Course Outline
DEV703 International Development Project A
Course Coordinator:Harriot Beazley (hbeazley@usc.edu.au) School:School of Law and Society
2026Session 5
UniSC Sunshine Coast |
Blended learning | Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online. |
Please go to unisc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
What is this course about?
Description
This course allows you to design and test a substantial project or field-based work. You will use your knowledge and skills learnt in the program and apply these in a field of interest to you. The course provides you with the opportunity to work more closely with a staff member who has the expertise to supervise your chosen topic and you may be able to work overseas in a developing country context in conjunction with a professional research team, agency or community group.
How will this course be delivered?
| Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
| Blended learning | |||
| Independent Study/Research – Regular meetings with a supervisor, and potentially other industry practitioners depending on the work situation, to be determined between the supervisor and the student | 3hrs | Week 1 | 8 times |
Course Topics
- Overview of Internship Organisation or Research Focus
- Overview of Designated Tasks / terms of Reference (TOR) or Research Plan
- Literature Review on chosen focus
What level is this course?
700 Level (Specialised)
What is the unit value of this course?
24 units
How does this course contribute to my learning?
| Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... | Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming... | |
| 1 | Demonstrate mastery of development theories and practice, and apply this to a specific situation. | Knowledgeable |
| 2 | Have a mastery of appropriate professional and field development practitioner conduct with partner organisations and local communities in different cultural contexts. | Empowered |
| 3 | Independently plan and design a task and appropriate methodological design to complete the task in ways that are of benefit to society. |
Engaged Sustainability-focussed |
| 4 | Synthesise deep, complex information about international development, including the institutions and practices involved; assess ethical implications of international development frameworks. |
Creative and critical thinker Ethical |
| 5 | Conduct research and thinking about social issues that make considered and ethical contributions to the future of society. |
Ethical Engaged |
Am I eligible to enrol in this course?
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
Pre-requisites
SCS725 and enrolled in Program AR700
Co-requisites
Not applicable
Anti-requisites
Not applicable
Specific assumed prior knowledge and skills (where applicable)
It is assumed that you have an understanding of designing a research project and research methods, through the pre-requisite SCS725, and that you will have the basic understanding of international development concepts.
Microcredential Information
Not applicable
How am I going to be assessed?
Grading Scale
Standard Grading (GRD)
| High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL). |
Details of early feedback on progress
Timely and detailed feedback is provided for each assessment. Feedback is provided both within text and general comments to build scholarly skills. Students are able to seek feedback through face-to-face discussion with the course coordinator. Tutorials will include extended discussion and review of the assessment task requirements and scope.
Assessment tasks
| Delivery mode | Task No. | Assessment Product | Individual or Group | Weighting % | What is the duration / length? | When should I submit? | Where should I submit it? |
| All | 1 | Report | Individual | 30% | 2000 words |
Week 3 | Online Submission |
| All | 2 | Written Piece | Individual | 30% | 2000 words |
Week 6 | Online Submission |
| All | 3 | Literature Review (or component) | Individual | 40% | 3000 words |
Refer to Format | Online Submission |
| All | 4 | Code of Conduct | Individual | 0% | n/a |
Throughout teaching period (refer to Format) | To be Negotiated |
| All - Assessment Task 1:Project proposal and Outline | ||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | You will develop a project proposal on the topic and an outline of your proposed research design to achieve this. |
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| Product: | Report | |||||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||||||||
| Format: | You should submit a project proposal with a title, project task, synopsis of the background topic, and proposed methodological design by which you will complete your task. You should cite a minimum of 8 references that justify your project design. You may consult with your supervisor as to the appropriate topic in advance of submitting this proposal. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | ||||||||||||||||
| All - Assessment Task 2:Site visit and initial assessment of project feasibility | ||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | You will finalise the project findings and present this in an appropriate report format. |
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| Product: | Written Piece | |||||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||||||||
| Format: | You will submit a report on the findings of your visit or project feasibility assessment. You will need to visit a workplace or community or conduct a pilot project in which you record your observations on the degree to which you can complete your international development project proposal (from task 1) and other observations that make you rethink the key challenges you observe. You must submit the report in the format provided by your supervisor and include a table of comments, key findings, the observations you recorded, and the implications of your proposed research. It will indicate an assessment of your preliminary progress and findings and implications for the subsequent weeks. |
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| All - Assessment Task 3:Literature review | |||||||||||||
| Goal: | This task is designed to provide you with an introduction to the scholarship of others who have worked on a similar topic. |
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| Product: | Literature Review (or component) | ||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | |||||||||||||
| Format: | In week 13 (Semester based ) or Week 8 (Session based) you will submit a detailed literature review about the academic scholarship that provides a background to your project. You need to show how and why this literature is relevant to your planned international development project. You will receive written feedback about your work that will help you with completing your international development project, and you will be required to consult with your supervisor about this feedback and other guidelines for reading and writing the review. |
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| All - Assessment Task 4:Code of Conduct | |||||||||||||
| Goal: | This task enables you to become familiar with the code of conduct for your discipline and work within its guidelines during a work integrated learning (WIL) experience |
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| Product: | Code of Conduct | ||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | |||||||||||||
| Format: | During your WIL experience you are required to complete the required hours of work experience.To be eligible to pass, you are required to complete the internship satisfactorily according to the criteria below. See Canvas for your discipline specific Code of Conduct. |
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Directed study hours
A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.
What resources do I need to undertake this course?
Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.
Prescribed text(s) or course reader
Specific requirements
Student need to pay for additional costs- travel etc
How are risks managed in this course?
What administrative information is relevant to this course?
Assessment: Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.
Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.
In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.
Assessment: Additional Requirements
Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying: The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4% The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale You have not failed an assessment task in the course due to academic misconduct.Assessment: Submission penalties
Late submission of assessment tasks may be penalised at the following maximum rate: - 5% (of the assessment task's identified value) per day for the first two days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. - 10% (of the assessment task's identified value) for the third day - 20% (of the assessment task's identified value) for the fourth day and subsequent days up to and including seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. - A result of zero is awarded for an assessment task submitted after seven days from the date identified as the due date for the assessment task. Weekdays and weekends are included in the calculation of days late. To request an extension you must contact your course coordinator to negotiate an outcome.Links to relevant University policy and procedures
For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:
- Assessment: Courses and Coursework Programs
- Review of Assessment and Final Grades
- Supplementary Assessment
- Central Examinations
- Deferred Examinations
- Student Conduct
- Students with a Disability
For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching
Student Charter
UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.
General Enquiries
- In person:
- UniSC Sunshine Coast - Student Central, Ground Floor, Building C, 90 Sippy Downs Drive, Sippy Downs
- UniSC Moreton Bay - Service Centre, Ground Floor, Foundation Building, Gympie Road, Petrie
- UniSC SouthBank - Student Central, Building A4 (SW1), 52 Merivale Street, South Brisbane
- UniSC Gympie - Student Central, 71 Cartwright Road, Gympie
- UniSC Fraser Coast - Student Central, Student Central, Building A, 161 Old Maryborough Rd, Hervey Bay
- UniSC Caboolture - Student Central, Level 1 Building J, Cnr Manley and Tallon Street, Caboolture
- Tel:+61 7 5430 2890
- Email:studentcentral@usc.edu.au